I have a 1993 Ford Aerostar with about 180,000 miles on her.

Aside from a few quirks here and there, she has been a very good van and has been put through a lot of grief, to include being jumped, driven through water so deep that water started to enter the air intake, received multiple dings, and has been dropped.

Overall, a really good van, and a great value.

I have a problem with the shifter.

I tried to shift it from park without fully depressing the service brake, and as a result, I snapped a metal piece in the steering column that connects the shifter arm to the shifter cable.

It is possible to shift the van by grasping the shifter cable and ratcheting it through whatever position I need.

I am curious as to how to go about fixing this. I have considered putting a floor shifter in, but I am unsure if they make a shifter that would work for it.

The local Autozone and Advance Autoparts have virtually nothing but idiots working for them, few that work there know a spark plug from lug nut.

I know that it is possible to replace the broken part in the steering column, but I am unsure how to go about taking it apart best.

The other problem is the lack of junk yards in the state. Doing manual labor on one's car is so far below the residents of the state that I live in that salvage yards are very hard to find, as most junked cars are shipped out of state.

 

I would think that the replacement part should be available from your local Ford dealer. I'm sure someone on this list can tell you how to safely disassemble your steering column.

It's possible to reach down and grab the cable, but it is not advisable. Since you can't see a gear indicator, you can not easily tell what position you end up with. On the other hand, you only need to get into 3 positions: forward, reverse, park. You would have to do this while completely stopped for safety reasons, both for the van, and any traffic around you.

Many years ago, I had a Granada with a 3-on-the-tree manual, and one day, the shifter broke. I couldn't believe that the only thing engaging the shift arms at the base of the column was this tiny steel protrusion from the shift tube. It broke off because of excessive stress, caused by me trying wrestle with the clunky shifter that never worked smoothly. I ended up reaching down the base of the column to move the shift arms in order to get home. I was barely able to see over the dash while doing this, so it was very dangerous.

 

My son replaced mine last year. Got in in the junkyard, maybe 25 dollars i think. Gotta pull abit of the dash apart to get to it tho. We also replaced the clockspring while in there, had no horn or cruise control. That fixed both.

 

welcome tshirt33,
glad to have u aboard, the more the merrier and the more we all learn.

 

Here is a problem, there are no junkyards within an hours drive from the base here in Groton, CT.

When I was stationed in Charleston, SC, I had not problem with trim parts needed after the van got "dropped", as there was plenty of junkyards around.

She was on a ramp that was being used to allow people to get into the parking lot of a hobby store near where I was stationed, as the main ramp was having new asphalt applied.
The ramp fell and the van hit the corner of the concrete slab on it's midsection.
Other than some dings and a new strap for the tank, all was well.